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Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program
The University of Nebraska at 51社区 (UNO) provides scholarship funding and stipends for future STEM teachers with help from a National Science Foundation grant.
Noyce Scholarship Overview | Noyce Scholars |STEM Professionals | UNO Noyce Network of
Support | Eligibility Requirements | Academic Requirements | Scholarship Application |
FAQs | Noyce Scholarship Leadership Team | Acknowledgments
Noyce Scholarship Overview
The NSF (National Science Foundation) Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program provides funding to institutions of higher education to provide scholarships, stipends, and programmatic support to recruit and prepare STEM majors and STEM professionals to become K-12 teachers. The program seeks to increase the number of K-12 teachers with strong STEM content knowledge who teach in high-need school districts.
The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program Track 1 at the University of Nebraska at 51社区 projects aims to serve the national need for preparing highly-qualified STEM teachers, which is crucial for preparing the nation’s competitive STEM workforce. Additionally, this project supports Noyce Scholars and STEM Professionals in the areas of Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Mathematics, and Physics by providing scholarships, mentoring, outreach experiences, and professional development. The scholarship program will enable high-achieving prospective teachers to become secondary STEM teachers with extensive expertise in inquiry-based teaching and learning.
Noyce Scholars
Noyce Scholars are undergraduate STEM students or graduate STEM professionals who receive scholarships and support through the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). At UNO, these scholars commit to pursuing secondary teaching careers in high-need schools, aiming to improve the quality of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education and increase diversity in STEM fields. The program provides financial assistance, professional development, mentorship, and practical teaching experience to encourage talented individuals from STEM backgrounds to become teachers.
The UNO Noyce STEM program offers up to $12,500 per year to encourage talented undergraduate majors in one of the STEM fields (Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Mathematics, and Physics) in their Junior or Senior year as well as STEM Professionals to earn a teaching credential, and commit to teaching in high-need school districts.
STEM Professionals
STEM Professionals are individuals who hold a degree in a Noyce-eligible STEM discipline and are either recently graduated or have a career in a STEM field. The UNO Noyce program aims to recruit these STEM professionals, as well as talented STEM undergraduates, to transition into careers as secondary teachers in high-need schools, providing them with the necessary financial support and preparation to become effective educators. Eligible STEM Professionals accepted into the program are offered up to $10,000 to pursue a teaching certificate in their STEM field.
UNO Noyce Network of Support
To support UNO Noyce Scholarship participants’ persistence and retention at UNO and in the classroom, UNO provides access to a wide array of services offered to all students at UNO. Moreover, the participants will engage in the UNO Noyce scholarship program activities focused on serving as learning assistants, supporting informal education outreach, and multi-tiered mentoring to develop their social capital and teacher self-efficacy.
The UNO NoyceSTEM program provides scholars with:
- Faculty Mentoring
Scholars are paired with faculty mentors who provide guidance and support for creating a personal professional development plan - Peer Mentoring
STEM Professionals and Noyce Scholars have the opportunity to join small peer mentoring groups. These groups meet weekly for collaboration, reflection, and support, with the project manager helping to facilitate discussions. - Learning Assistant Experience
Noyce Scholars can gain hands-on classroom experience as Learning Assistants in active learning environments. They’ll work with small groups, support students one-on-one, and even lead supervised whole-class instruction alongside their faculty mentor. - Outreach Opportunities
Participants are invited to take part in established UNO outreach programs, offering meaningful ways to engage youth in STEM through informal education initiatives such as NE STEM 4U, Eureka, Code Crush, and Aim for the Stars. - Professional Development
Pre-service and in-service Noyce Scholars will have opportunities to come together, share experiences, and support one another’s growth.
Eligibility Requirements
Noyce Scholars
- Be a United States citizen, national, or permanent resident alien.
- Junior or Senior majoring in a STEM field (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Computer Science, Environmental Science or Mathematics.
- Demonstrate a commitment to pursue a teaching certification and teach in a high-need school. (2 years per number of scholarship award years required.)
- Have a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 2.75 or above (aligns with UNO's teacher prep program requirements.)
- Demonstrate financial need.
STEM Professionals
- Be a United States citizen, national, or permanent resident alien.
- Hold a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field as defined by the NSF at any stages of their career (recent graduate to retiree.)
- Demonstrate a commitment to pursue a teaching certification and teach in a high-need school. (2 years per number of scholarship award years required.)
- Demonstrate financial need.
Academic Requirements
Our undergraduate and Teacher Preparation pathways are comprehensive four-year baccalaureate programs that require students to complete general education courses, professional core courses in the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences, and courses in their chosen STEM discipline.
(APPLY HERE) Scholarship Application
Noyce Scholars
If you have any questions, please email the UNO Noyce Project Manager, Deanna Johansen.
STEM Professionals
Email the UNO Noyce Project Manager, Deanna Johansen, with your interest and area of STEM expertise. She will connect you with the best faculty member on the scholarship team for further information.
FAQs
Am I limited to teaching in Nebraska or can I teach anywhere?
You can teach anywhere in the USA, as long as it is considered a “high-need school.” However, your ability to teach in another state will depend on that state's requirements for teacher certification and reciprocity agreements with Nebraska.
What is a “high-needs school”?
The term "high-need local educational agency (or high-need LEA)", as defined in section 201 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021), means a U.S. local educational agency (e.g., school district) that has at least one school that:
1. Meets at least one of the following criteria:
- not less than 20% of the children served by the agency are from low-income families;
- serves at least 10,000 children from low-income families;
- is eligible for funding under the Small, Rural School Achievement Program under 20 U.S.C. 7345(b); or
- is eligible for funding under the Rural and Low-Income School Program under 20 U.S.C. 7351(b);
AND
2. Meets at least one of the following criteria:
- has a high percentage of teachers not teaching in the academic subject areas or grade levels in which the teachers were trained to teach;
- has a high teacher turnover rate or a high percentage of teachers with emergency, provisional, or temporary certification or licensure.
What happens if I do not teach in a 'high-need school" at the completion of the program?
You are required to teach for two years in a high-need school for each year of scholarship funding you received. This commitment must be completed within eight years of graduating. If you do not fulfill this teaching requirement, the scholarship money will revert to a loan that must be repaid with interest.
Must I demonstrate financial need to apply?
Anyone can apply, but preference is given to those who demonstrate financial need.
Noyce Scholarship Leadership Team
- Dr. Michael Matthews
Professor of Mathematics, Haddix Community Chair in Mathematics - Dr. Claudia Rauter
Associate Professor of Biology, director of UNO’s NE STEM4U, Haddix Community Chair in Science - Dr. Chris Moore
Director of the STEM TRAIL Center, Professor of Physics, Haddix Community Chair in Physical Science - Dr. Paula Jakopovic
Associate Professor of STEM Education in the Teacher Education Department at UNO - Dr. Tracie Reding
Research Director at the STEM TRAIL Center with a background in STEM education research. - Dr. Alfredo J. Perez
Associate Professor with the Department of Computer Science - Dr. Derrick Nero
Associate Professor with the Teacher Education Department - Deanna Johansen
STEM TRAIL Center Project Coordinator, Noyce Program Manager
Acknowledgments
The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program, authorized under the National Science Foundation responds to the critical need for K-12 teachers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by encouraging talented STEM students and professionals to pursue teaching careers in elementary and secondary schools.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DUE-2448147.